Cayenne is a type of hot red pepper, and also the spicy powder made from grinding these dried peppers. When a recipe calls for cayenne pepper, it means this bright red spice that adds sharp heat to food.

Cayenne peppers are thin, pointed, and usually about as long as your finger. When dried and ground, they create a fine powder that looks harmless but packs serious heat. Just a pinch can make chili or soup suddenly spicy. Cooks use cayenne to add warmth to everything from scrambled eggs to chocolate (yes, really!).

These peppers grow in warm climates worldwide. On the Scoville scale, which measures pepper spiciness, cayenne ranks as moderately hot: much spicier than a jalapeño but nowhere near the painful intensity of a habanero or ghost pepper.

When cooking with cayenne, start with tiny amounts. You can always add more, but you can't take it out once it's stirred in. And if you get cayenne on your hands, wash them thoroughly before touching your eyes or face, because that burning sensation is no joke.